Intro

It seems that as each month passes the speed of DVD writers increases and the cost comes down. It wasnâ€™t that long ago that I was looking at drives half the speed as these ones but costing twice as much.

One thing worth noting in this test is that there is no sign of any single format drives. It seems that every manufacturer has realised that itâ€™s not worth supporting only one format when you can support two. And as far as LG is concerned, thereâ€™s no reason to support two formats when you can support three â€“ once again proving to be the only manufacturer supplying a drive that writes to DVD-R/RW, DVD+R/RW and DVD-RAM.

Having a DVD writer in your PC should definitely not be considered a luxury anymore. Almost every new PC that makes its way into the TrustedReviews offices has a DVD writer, and a good few notebooks too. And even if your PC doesnâ€™t have a DVD writer installed, with retail bundles going for under Â£70, itâ€™s definitely worth investing.

Also with the ever increasing popularity in small form factor systems, a DVD writer with fast CD-R/RW performance is the obvious choice when it comes to filling that single 5.25in drive bay.

So, if youâ€™re looking to jump on the DVD burning bandwagon, read on and find out what the best optical solution is.